26/10/2004 10:04:12 pm
The US and Europe - and Warnings about Kerry. When I spoke in Lund earlier tonight about the relation between the US and Europe, I gave an optimistic view of the future. No matter who wins the election, the American President will try to build better relations with Europe. The differences over the Iraq war will fade and economic realties will gain in importance. First and last, on both sides of the Atlantic, in peacetime, jobs and growth is what means most for voters and hence politicians. And despite the fact that Europe lags behind economically, the economic ties are strong. The US foreign direct investment, FDI, in Europe was 87 billion dollars in 2003 - an increase with 30 % since 2002. The US has ten times more assets in Holland alone than they do in China. And the EU does 75 % of all the FDI in America every year. So the ties over the Atlantic will be repaired. Some say that Kerry would have the best opportunities to do it; not least since he speaks French. Based on economic reasons again, I believe the opposite. John Kerry and John Edwards have proposed an economic program with a clear protectionist profile. They would subsidise American industry, re-negotiate every trade deal the US has signed and impose tariffs. That would harm global trade, make poor people poorer - and make relations with Europe worse.
Read my article that compares the two economic programs (in Swedish) - >